Click for a larger view. The "major" Interstates (east-west highways ending in 0 and north-south highways ending in 5) are colored; the "minor" interstates are gray.Hat tip to Matt Yglesias.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Cool map of the day
Via GOOD, a really neat map of the Interstate Highway System drawn in the style of a map of the London Underground:
Click for a larger view. The "major" Interstates (east-west highways ending in 0 and north-south highways ending in 5) are colored; the "minor" interstates are gray.
Hat tip to Matt Yglesias.
Click for a larger view. The "major" Interstates (east-west highways ending in 0 and north-south highways ending in 5) are colored; the "minor" interstates are gray.Hat tip to Matt Yglesias.
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Not to gloat or anything, but...
...it's kind of cool to see this kind of development planned for a rail station that I helped locate.
This particular corner of Lewisville, close to the intersection of I-35E and the 121 Bypass and right across the Interstate from Vista Ridge Mall, has already seen significant retail, office park and multifamily development. So the kind of density, land use and amenity mix being planned makes sense for this area. My only question is how they'll deal with the floodplain issues.
Kuff and Greg have more.
This particular corner of Lewisville, close to the intersection of I-35E and the 121 Bypass and right across the Interstate from Vista Ridge Mall, has already seen significant retail, office park and multifamily development. So the kind of density, land use and amenity mix being planned makes sense for this area. My only question is how they'll deal with the floodplain issues.
Kuff and Greg have more.
Monday, November 02, 2009
#17 Houston 50, Southern Miss 43
Thirty-six seconds.
That's all it took for the University of Houston offense to score the game-winning touchdown against Southern Mississippi last Saturday.
In shouldn't have come down to that, of course. The Cougars were leading by a comfortable eighteen points early in the fourth quarter, but then the defense became complacent and that, along with an inopportune Cougar fumble, allowed the Golden Eagles to mount a furious fourth-quarter. USM tied the game with 57 seconds remaining and everybody in the stadium thought that overtime was in the works.
Everybody, that is, except for Case Keenum and the rest of the Cougar offense. With all three time outs at their disposal, The Cougars marched right back down the field to score with 21 seconds remaining. Southern Miss then got the ball back and attempted to tie it up, but USM QB Martevious Young's hail mary pass into the endzone was batted away and the Cougars held on to win, 50-43.
Keenum was his usual impressive self, completing 44 of 54 passes for 559 yards and five touchdowns. He was also intercepted once and sacked once, but still performed well enough to earn a helmet sticker from Lou Holtz on ESPN's College Football Final. The Cougars also gained another 191 yards on the ground for a whopping 750 yards of total offense. But the real story of the game came from the Cougar special teams, which blocked one USM field goal and two USM extra points, running one of them back for a two point conversion of its own. That equated to seven points that turned out to be the difference in the game.
With the good came the bad, however. Houston's defense played reasonably well for three quarters but was completely dominated in the fourth, allowing three Southern Miss touchdowns. In all, the Golden Eagles gained 608 yards of total offense and suffered no turnovers. Houston running back Bryce Beall, on the other hand, fumbled the ball three times. Needless to say, the coaches will be spending a lot of time working with him on his ball handling skills this week.
The important thing, however, is that the Coogs came away with the W. As a result of the win, the Cougars move up from #17 to #13 in the AP poll. They're now 15th in the Coaches poll and 15th in the BCS standing as well. In order to crash the BCS party, they need to be at least 12th. With non-automatic-qualifiers TCU and Boise State already in the top ten, however, I don't think the Cougars are going to be busting the BCS this year. That loss to UTEP really hurts in that regard. However, UTEP's loss to UAB last Saturday also means that the Cougars are once again in control of their own destiny regarding the division championship.
Which is significant in that the road doesn't get any easier from here. The Cougars now travel to Tulsa to play their second game of the "Golden Trifecta" against the Golden Hurricane. Needless to say, Tulsa has revenge on their minds after their 70-30 beating at the hands of Houston last season. The Coogs are in for another struggle, and the young defense must improve.
Given the history of the two schools, it should be no surprise that Saturday's game was as hard-fought as it was. Since the two teams joined Conference USA in 1996, USM has traditionally been Houston's nemesis. The games are oftentimes close - past scores inclide 56-49, 15-21, 29-35, 27-31 and even 3-6 - and the Golden Eagles command a 7-3 lead over the Coogs in the series.
That's all it took for the University of Houston offense to score the game-winning touchdown against Southern Mississippi last Saturday.
In shouldn't have come down to that, of course. The Cougars were leading by a comfortable eighteen points early in the fourth quarter, but then the defense became complacent and that, along with an inopportune Cougar fumble, allowed the Golden Eagles to mount a furious fourth-quarter. USM tied the game with 57 seconds remaining and everybody in the stadium thought that overtime was in the works.
Everybody, that is, except for Case Keenum and the rest of the Cougar offense. With all three time outs at their disposal, The Cougars marched right back down the field to score with 21 seconds remaining. Southern Miss then got the ball back and attempted to tie it up, but USM QB Martevious Young's hail mary pass into the endzone was batted away and the Cougars held on to win, 50-43.
Keenum was his usual impressive self, completing 44 of 54 passes for 559 yards and five touchdowns. He was also intercepted once and sacked once, but still performed well enough to earn a helmet sticker from Lou Holtz on ESPN's College Football Final. The Cougars also gained another 191 yards on the ground for a whopping 750 yards of total offense. But the real story of the game came from the Cougar special teams, which blocked one USM field goal and two USM extra points, running one of them back for a two point conversion of its own. That equated to seven points that turned out to be the difference in the game.
With the good came the bad, however. Houston's defense played reasonably well for three quarters but was completely dominated in the fourth, allowing three Southern Miss touchdowns. In all, the Golden Eagles gained 608 yards of total offense and suffered no turnovers. Houston running back Bryce Beall, on the other hand, fumbled the ball three times. Needless to say, the coaches will be spending a lot of time working with him on his ball handling skills this week.
The important thing, however, is that the Coogs came away with the W. As a result of the win, the Cougars move up from #17 to #13 in the AP poll. They're now 15th in the Coaches poll and 15th in the BCS standing as well. In order to crash the BCS party, they need to be at least 12th. With non-automatic-qualifiers TCU and Boise State already in the top ten, however, I don't think the Cougars are going to be busting the BCS this year. That loss to UTEP really hurts in that regard. However, UTEP's loss to UAB last Saturday also means that the Cougars are once again in control of their own destiny regarding the division championship.
Which is significant in that the road doesn't get any easier from here. The Cougars now travel to Tulsa to play their second game of the "Golden Trifecta" against the Golden Hurricane. Needless to say, Tulsa has revenge on their minds after their 70-30 beating at the hands of Houston last season. The Coogs are in for another struggle, and the young defense must improve.
Given the history of the two schools, it should be no surprise that Saturday's game was as hard-fought as it was. Since the two teams joined Conference USA in 1996, USM has traditionally been Houston's nemesis. The games are oftentimes close - past scores inclide 56-49, 15-21, 29-35, 27-31 and even 3-6 - and the Golden Eagles command a 7-3 lead over the Coogs in the series.
New stadium for North Texas; could one be on the way for Houston?
The University of North Texas announced last Thursday that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board had approved their request to build a new football stadium in Denton. Groundbreaking is to occur later this month, with construction scheduled to be completed in time for the 2011 season. The new stadium will be located on the other side of Interstate 35E from Fouts Field and will seat about 30,000.
This is a great step forward for the struggling Mean Green football program. 57-year-old Fouts Field was old and lacking in amenities and its sightlines weren't great. Denton ISD's new stadium on the north side of Loop 288 put it to shame, and it's hard to recruit high school students that are used to better facilities than the ones your school is offering.
The University of Houston is in the same boat. As much as I love Robertson Stadium, the fact is that it is even older than Fouts Field - it was built in 1940 - and is simply substandard in terms of amenities such as locker rooms, press boxes, restrooms, concession areas, luxury suites and the like. It really needs to be upgraded, or even replaced. To that end, the University has just put out a Request for Qualifications (see .pdf here) for a feasibility study to renovate or even replace Robertson Stadium. Several options are going to be considered, including the possible construction of a new stadium on the intermural fields at the corner of Cullen and I-45 (a prospect that is appealing to me) or on the other side of Brays Bayou from campus in MacGregor Park. Any new stadium would have to have a capacity of 40,000 fans, up from Robertson's current capacity of about 32,000.
The RFQ comes as no surprise, as new Athletics Director Mack Rhoades has experience building new stadia from his time at Akron and was brought to Houston precisely for this reason. What is a bit of a surprise is the speed at which the University of Houston wants the study completed; the RFQ closes on November 23rd and the study could begin as soon as early January 2010. Clearly, the University of Houston administration wants to move forward with these facilities upgrades as soon as possible.
This is a great step forward for the struggling Mean Green football program. 57-year-old Fouts Field was old and lacking in amenities and its sightlines weren't great. Denton ISD's new stadium on the north side of Loop 288 put it to shame, and it's hard to recruit high school students that are used to better facilities than the ones your school is offering.
The University of Houston is in the same boat. As much as I love Robertson Stadium, the fact is that it is even older than Fouts Field - it was built in 1940 - and is simply substandard in terms of amenities such as locker rooms, press boxes, restrooms, concession areas, luxury suites and the like. It really needs to be upgraded, or even replaced. To that end, the University has just put out a Request for Qualifications (see .pdf here) for a feasibility study to renovate or even replace Robertson Stadium. Several options are going to be considered, including the possible construction of a new stadium on the intermural fields at the corner of Cullen and I-45 (a prospect that is appealing to me) or on the other side of Brays Bayou from campus in MacGregor Park. Any new stadium would have to have a capacity of 40,000 fans, up from Robertson's current capacity of about 32,000.
The RFQ comes as no surprise, as new Athletics Director Mack Rhoades has experience building new stadia from his time at Akron and was brought to Houston precisely for this reason. What is a bit of a surprise is the speed at which the University of Houston wants the study completed; the RFQ closes on November 23rd and the study could begin as soon as early January 2010. Clearly, the University of Houston administration wants to move forward with these facilities upgrades as soon as possible.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Happy Halloween!
The weather was wonderful, our morning tailgate was successful, the Cougars managed a thrilling 50-43 victory over Southern Miss, we had a good neighborhood Halloween Party and Kirby did pretty well with his trick-or-treating candy haul. All in all, a pretty good Halloween. Here are some pictures.
Kirby the Dinosaur bears his teeth and tries to look scary:
The neighborhood Halloween party featured an inflatable moonwalk for the kids to jump around in. The festivities were briefly marred, however, when a mischevious Kirby ran back behind the castle and unplugged its air blower, causing it to deflate. Fortunately, nobody was hurt and the moonwalk was quickly reinflated.
Lori the Witch was on hand to keep Kirby from disrupting the party any further:
Kirby the Dinosaur bears his teeth and tries to look scary:
The neighborhood Halloween party featured an inflatable moonwalk for the kids to jump around in. The festivities were briefly marred, however, when a mischevious Kirby ran back behind the castle and unplugged its air blower, causing it to deflate. Fortunately, nobody was hurt and the moonwalk was quickly reinflated. Lori the Witch was on hand to keep Kirby from disrupting the party any further:
My costume was that of a happy, if not sunburnt, University of Houston fan. The noon start time was good in that it meant that the game did not conflict with trick-or-treating activities, but Houstonians simply aren't used to games so early and attendance suffered as a result:
Friday, October 30, 2009
Too much bubble bath soap?
I probably need to watch Kirby a little more closely when he's pouring bubble bath soap into my parents' bathtub. I think he used a bit too much the other evening: 
Oh, well. At least he had a good time and was completely clean by the time he got out.
Oh, well. At least he had a good time and was completely clean by the time he got out.
Meet the giant swallowtail
That's right, another butterfly post!
Papilio cresphontes is larger and has a somewhat different yellow-and-black pattern than its cousin Papilio polyxenes. It is, in fact, the largest butterfly native to the United States.
I caught this guy hanging out on my neighbor's lantana. He (or she) was cooperative enough to let me get this photograph.
As beautiful as these insects are, they are sometimes considered pests to the citrus industry because citrus trees are a host plant for giant swallowtail caterpillars. I, on the other hand, might plant a lemon tree just to attract more of these guys.
Papilio cresphontes is larger and has a somewhat different yellow-and-black pattern than its cousin Papilio polyxenes. It is, in fact, the largest butterfly native to the United States.
I caught this guy hanging out on my neighbor's lantana. He (or she) was cooperative enough to let me get this photograph.As beautiful as these insects are, they are sometimes considered pests to the citrus industry because citrus trees are a host plant for giant swallowtail caterpillars. I, on the other hand, might plant a lemon tree just to attract more of these guys.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Because you're never too old, Part II
In addition to GeoTrax, I have also been putting together a considerable Rokenbok collection. I consider Rokenbok to be perhaps the greatest toy so far invented by humankind: it's a construction toy, a remote-control toy, a model train and an action toy all rolled up in to one. I started collecting Rokenbok before Kirby was even born, but due to his age didn't really start playing with it and him until earlier this year.
Over the summer, the Rokenbok company issued a "monorail building challenge:" build and create a video of an original and unique Rokenbok monorail system, and have a chance to win a $100 Rokenbok gift certificate. I decided to enter the challenge to have fun building and playing with Kirby (and to get some free monorail components in the process), so I cleared the living room floor at my parents' house (they were out of town for most of the summer), and set to work. Here's Kirby playing with what I came up with:
Over the summer, the Rokenbok company issued a "monorail building challenge:" build and create a video of an original and unique Rokenbok monorail system, and have a chance to win a $100 Rokenbok gift certificate. I decided to enter the challenge to have fun building and playing with Kirby (and to get some free monorail components in the process), so I cleared the living room floor at my parents' house (they were out of town for most of the summer), and set to work. Here's Kirby playing with what I came up with:
The layout featured two separate monorail trains which interacted with various action modules. Other action features included a remote-control crane and several remote-control trucks.
Even though Rokenbok is recommended for children ages six and older, Kirby has already mastered the remote control aspect of the toy:
Needless to say, Kirby and I were very sad when the time came to dismantle the layout and return mom and dad's living room to its original state:
Here is the video I created, edited and submitted in time for the early September deadline:
So imagine how surprised I was when I was informed that I had received the "Judge's Award," bestowed upon my design by a panel of Rokenbok employees who decided that my layout best demonstrated "all of the capabilities of the Rokenbok Monorail System and how it interacts with the rest of the Rokenbok world." Needless to say, I was pretty pleased. Not only did it mean a $100 Rokenbok gift certificate - more stuff for me and Kirby - but I have now been officially declared a "King of the Rok" by Rokenbok creator Paul Eichen himself!
That being said, I'm not merely being humble when I say my design was honestly not the most complicated or inventive. Take a moment to view some of the other entries in the contest. Some of the designs that were submitted are nothing short of amazing.
Houston defeats SMU 38-15, improves to 6-1
I realize it's been exactly one month since I last updated this blog. As I mentioned a couple of months ago, things are happening in both my personal as well as my professional life right now such that blogging is going to be light for awhile.
I'm still here, however, and I'm still following the University of Houston Cougars as they make their way through what so far has been an extremely exciting season.
It's probably a good thing that I was too busy to write an entry about Houston's soul-crushing 41-58 loss to Texas-El Paso back at the beginning of October. In one game, the team managed to undo everything that they had accomplished by beating Oklahoma State and Texas Tech. The Coogs dropped out of the top 25, their shot as a "BCS Buster" ended, and whatever slim chance quarterback Case Keenum had to win the Heisman Trophy vanished. The Cougars simply weren't mentally prepared for what was clearly a "trap" game, and UTEP, which is otherwise not a very good team, took full advantage of the opportunity. The Houston defense was particularly pathetic, allowing Miner RB Donald Buckram to amass an embarrassing 262 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Not even Case Keenum's 51 pass completions, 536 passing yards and five touchdown passes could make up for the rest of the team's poor performance. In one game, the Cougars went from being a potential top ten team to a team that was now not even in control of its own destiny to win its division.
Going in to a tough out-of-conference showdown against SEC opponent Mississippi State in Starkville, there was plenty of concern as to the effect of such a devastating loss on such a young team. Could they put the loss behind them and refocus? Or would the team take a nosedive? "The Coogs can still have a great season. They can win Conference USA and go to a bowl and be remembered as the team that continued to put UH football back on the national map," wrote Chronicle columnist Richard Justice shortly after the loss. "In the end, they'll be judged more on what they do after UTEP than what they did against UTEP."
If that's the case, then so far the Cougars deserved to be judged well. Since the UTEP debacle, they've rattled off three straight victories: a 31-24 defeat of Mississippi State (putting the Coogs at 4-0 for their nonconference schedule and 3-0 against teams from BCS conferences), a 44-16 beatdown of Tulane in the Superdome (the Cougars only led 9-6 at the half, but scored 20 unanswered points in the third quarter; I made the trip and had a great time at the game, on Bourbon Street and at Mother's), and, last weekend, a 38-15 homecoming victory over Southern Methodist.
Case Keenum did not put up his usual numbers gainst SMU; he "only" completed 25 of 36 passes for 233 yards and one touchdown, but in the end it didn't matter. The Cougar running game racked up 161 yards on the ground, and the defense recovered three SMU turnovers and held the Mustangs to o-for-10 on third-down conversions. SMU didn't even find the endzone until the fourth quarter, when they tried to mount a late rally, but a Charles Sims touchdown run with less than six minutes remaining sealed the win for the Cougars.
So now the Cougars find themselves bowl-eligible at 6-1 and are ranked 17th in the AP poll and 16th in the Coaches poll. There's still a lot of football left to be played, however, starting with a game against the always-tough-to-beat Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles at Robertson Stadium on Halloween. They then have back-to-back road games against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane and the Central Florida Golden Knights (we'll call this portion of the schedule the "Golden Trifecta...") before returning home to play Memphis and Rice to end the season. And the Coogs still need UTEP to lose at least one more game in order to reclaim the driver's seat in Conference USA's western division.
But one thing is for certain: so far, and even in spite of the ignoble loss to UTEP, the Cougars have exceeded everybody's expectations for the 2009 season. Here's to hoping that they can keep it up.
I'm still here, however, and I'm still following the University of Houston Cougars as they make their way through what so far has been an extremely exciting season.
It's probably a good thing that I was too busy to write an entry about Houston's soul-crushing 41-58 loss to Texas-El Paso back at the beginning of October. In one game, the team managed to undo everything that they had accomplished by beating Oklahoma State and Texas Tech. The Coogs dropped out of the top 25, their shot as a "BCS Buster" ended, and whatever slim chance quarterback Case Keenum had to win the Heisman Trophy vanished. The Cougars simply weren't mentally prepared for what was clearly a "trap" game, and UTEP, which is otherwise not a very good team, took full advantage of the opportunity. The Houston defense was particularly pathetic, allowing Miner RB Donald Buckram to amass an embarrassing 262 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Not even Case Keenum's 51 pass completions, 536 passing yards and five touchdown passes could make up for the rest of the team's poor performance. In one game, the Cougars went from being a potential top ten team to a team that was now not even in control of its own destiny to win its division.
Going in to a tough out-of-conference showdown against SEC opponent Mississippi State in Starkville, there was plenty of concern as to the effect of such a devastating loss on such a young team. Could they put the loss behind them and refocus? Or would the team take a nosedive? "The Coogs can still have a great season. They can win Conference USA and go to a bowl and be remembered as the team that continued to put UH football back on the national map," wrote Chronicle columnist Richard Justice shortly after the loss. "In the end, they'll be judged more on what they do after UTEP than what they did against UTEP."
If that's the case, then so far the Cougars deserved to be judged well. Since the UTEP debacle, they've rattled off three straight victories: a 31-24 defeat of Mississippi State (putting the Coogs at 4-0 for their nonconference schedule and 3-0 against teams from BCS conferences), a 44-16 beatdown of Tulane in the Superdome (the Cougars only led 9-6 at the half, but scored 20 unanswered points in the third quarter; I made the trip and had a great time at the game, on Bourbon Street and at Mother's), and, last weekend, a 38-15 homecoming victory over Southern Methodist.
Case Keenum did not put up his usual numbers gainst SMU; he "only" completed 25 of 36 passes for 233 yards and one touchdown, but in the end it didn't matter. The Cougar running game racked up 161 yards on the ground, and the defense recovered three SMU turnovers and held the Mustangs to o-for-10 on third-down conversions. SMU didn't even find the endzone until the fourth quarter, when they tried to mount a late rally, but a Charles Sims touchdown run with less than six minutes remaining sealed the win for the Cougars.
So now the Cougars find themselves bowl-eligible at 6-1 and are ranked 17th in the AP poll and 16th in the Coaches poll. There's still a lot of football left to be played, however, starting with a game against the always-tough-to-beat Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles at Robertson Stadium on Halloween. They then have back-to-back road games against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane and the Central Florida Golden Knights (we'll call this portion of the schedule the "Golden Trifecta...") before returning home to play Memphis and Rice to end the season. And the Coogs still need UTEP to lose at least one more game in order to reclaim the driver's seat in Conference USA's western division.
But one thing is for certain: so far, and even in spite of the ignoble loss to UTEP, the Cougars have exceeded everybody's expectations for the 2009 season. Here's to hoping that they can keep it up.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
#17 Houston 29, Texas Tech 28
Nobody knows what the future will hold, of course. But years from now, if the Cougars are a member of a BCS conference, are playing in a 40-thousand seat on-campus stadium that they regularly fill, and are enjoying season after season of bowl victories and top 25 rankings, perhaps people will look back to last Saturday's 29-28 victory over Texas Tech as the program's turning point: the day when, after so many years of wandering in the wilderness, it all came together for University of Houston football.
First, there was the pre-game tailgate. Since moving out of the Astrodome over a decade ago, the University of Houston has progressively developed an excellent pregame tailgating culture. Last Saturday, however, it reached a completely new level as people arrived earlier than they ever had before in greater numbers than they ever had before. That incredible atmosphere alone doubtlessly made many first-time visitors to Robertson Stadium UH fans. It certainly impressed the folks from my office that I invited to my group's tailgate, and they plan to come back for more games.
Then there was the crowd: a boisterous, over-capacity gathering of 32,114 - the largest crowd UH has attracted since moving games on campus over a decade ago - was on hand to see the game. While that number might not sound impressive in relation to the crowds that some big-name schools attract, it's a huge step forward for a University of Houston program that has always seemed to struggle with poor attendance. Yes, there were lots of Texas Tech fans there. But the crowd was overwhelmingly comprised of Cougar fans, and they were loud and spirited the entire game. Many of them were there for the first time. And many of them will be coming back. At the very least, the standing-room-only crowd provides a real incentive for the UH administration to push forward with long-discussed plans to refurbish or replace Robertson Stadium.
And then, there was the game.
I've always said that the two best and most exciting UH football games I had ever attended in person were 1990's 36-31 victory over Texas A&M in the Astrodome and the 1996 56-49 victory over Southern Miss at Robertson in 1996. Last Saturday's thriller tops them both.
Make no mistake: the Red Raiders are a very good team. They showed it last Saturday, as they gained 484 yards on offense and limited the prolific Cougar offense to just three touchdowns on defense. Texas Tech led the game 21-13 at halftime and 28-20 late in the third quarter. The Cougars played well, too, amassing 579 offensive yards of their own and limiting the high-flying Red Raider offense to only seven points in the entire second half.
Texas Tech, however, led for most of the game, and had several chances to put the game away. Unfortunately for them, the Cougars would simply not back down. Early in the 4th quarter and up by five points, Texas Tech drove to the UH one yard line and attempted to score a touchdown on fourth-and-goal that surely would have put the game out of reach. The Cougar defense stopped them. On the following drive, Houston drove into Texas Tech territory and looked to take the lead, only to be intercepted. But the Cougar defense once again stood tall, forcing the Red Raiders to punt the ball away.
What happened then, with under six minutes to play and the ball at the UH 5 yard line, was something that will forever live in University of Houston lore: the "Two-Day Drive" (so named because it started before midnight and ended shortly afterward). 16 plays. 95 yards. 4 minutes 58 seconds. Touchdown. If you haven't seen it yet, here's part one, courtesy of ESPN:
And here's part two:
The video does not do justice to the absolute bedlam that engulfed Robertson Stadium when UH quarterback Case Keenum (38 of 58 for 435 yards and one touchdown) scampered into the endzone to score what would prove to be the winning touchdown. With 49 seconds left and only needing a field goal to win, Texas Tech desperately tried to march back down the field. But thanks to the UH defense (as well as the Red Raiders' lack of timeouts), the Cougars held on for the nail-biting 29-28 win.
The win is remarkable considering that Houston did not play their best football of the season. The Cougars were penalized 8 times for 74 yards, including one penalty that negated an interception. The UH defense allowed 163 rushing yards to a team that had managed a total of only 86 rushing yards in their first three games combined. Special teams missed two field goals. Keenum's 65.5 percent pass completion rate, while decent, was lower than usual. He also was sacked twice and intercepted once. The Coogs also got some help from Texas Tech mistakes: aside from the Red Raiders' two turnovers and 8 penalties, there was also head coach Mike Leach's decision to go for it on 4th-and-1 when a field goal probably would have put the game out of reach, as well as Tech's decision to use their three time outs early in the second half.
Still, a win is a win and their second-consecutive victory over a Big XII opponent was a huge one for the Cougars, one that proved that the stunning upset at Oklahoma State two weeks ago was no fluke and that the Cougars are indeed a team to be respected. The nation has noticed. The Cougars are now ranked #12 in the AP poll and are being mentioned as possible "BCS Busters" by national media outlets such as The Washington Post and The New York Times. Case Keenum is also getting some serious attention as a Heisman candidate.
In my opinion, it's too early to think of the Cougars as a "BCS Buster." They'd have to go undefeated in order to do so and that's still a tall order. The team now needs to go on a grueling three-game road trip; Saturday's game against Texas El-Paso has "letdown" and "trap" written all over it and the showdown against SEC team Mississippi State two weeks from now looms large. Nevertheless, if you had told me before the season started that the Cougars would be 3-0 and ranked right outside the top ten right now, I wouldn't have believed you. This has been an incredible start to the 2009 football season and I am thoroughly enjoying it.
It will be months, if not years, before the true significance of last Saturday's game and its Two-Day Drive will be known. But, from where I stood that night at a packed Robertson Stadium, watching the Cougars drive 95 yards in five minutes to win a game over a Big XII opponent, you'd have a hard time convincing me that University of Houston had not finally reached its turning point. After suffering for so long through so many seasons of mediocrity and apathy, this is a much-needed and well-deserved time for the University of Houston, its athletes, its coaches, its students and its alumni. May it only continue.
Go Coogs!
First, there was the pre-game tailgate. Since moving out of the Astrodome over a decade ago, the University of Houston has progressively developed an excellent pregame tailgating culture. Last Saturday, however, it reached a completely new level as people arrived earlier than they ever had before in greater numbers than they ever had before. That incredible atmosphere alone doubtlessly made many first-time visitors to Robertson Stadium UH fans. It certainly impressed the folks from my office that I invited to my group's tailgate, and they plan to come back for more games.
Then there was the crowd: a boisterous, over-capacity gathering of 32,114 - the largest crowd UH has attracted since moving games on campus over a decade ago - was on hand to see the game. While that number might not sound impressive in relation to the crowds that some big-name schools attract, it's a huge step forward for a University of Houston program that has always seemed to struggle with poor attendance. Yes, there were lots of Texas Tech fans there. But the crowd was overwhelmingly comprised of Cougar fans, and they were loud and spirited the entire game. Many of them were there for the first time. And many of them will be coming back. At the very least, the standing-room-only crowd provides a real incentive for the UH administration to push forward with long-discussed plans to refurbish or replace Robertson Stadium.
And then, there was the game.
I've always said that the two best and most exciting UH football games I had ever attended in person were 1990's 36-31 victory over Texas A&M in the Astrodome and the 1996 56-49 victory over Southern Miss at Robertson in 1996. Last Saturday's thriller tops them both.
Make no mistake: the Red Raiders are a very good team. They showed it last Saturday, as they gained 484 yards on offense and limited the prolific Cougar offense to just three touchdowns on defense. Texas Tech led the game 21-13 at halftime and 28-20 late in the third quarter. The Cougars played well, too, amassing 579 offensive yards of their own and limiting the high-flying Red Raider offense to only seven points in the entire second half.
Texas Tech, however, led for most of the game, and had several chances to put the game away. Unfortunately for them, the Cougars would simply not back down. Early in the 4th quarter and up by five points, Texas Tech drove to the UH one yard line and attempted to score a touchdown on fourth-and-goal that surely would have put the game out of reach. The Cougar defense stopped them. On the following drive, Houston drove into Texas Tech territory and looked to take the lead, only to be intercepted. But the Cougar defense once again stood tall, forcing the Red Raiders to punt the ball away.
What happened then, with under six minutes to play and the ball at the UH 5 yard line, was something that will forever live in University of Houston lore: the "Two-Day Drive" (so named because it started before midnight and ended shortly afterward). 16 plays. 95 yards. 4 minutes 58 seconds. Touchdown. If you haven't seen it yet, here's part one, courtesy of ESPN:
And here's part two:
The video does not do justice to the absolute bedlam that engulfed Robertson Stadium when UH quarterback Case Keenum (38 of 58 for 435 yards and one touchdown) scampered into the endzone to score what would prove to be the winning touchdown. With 49 seconds left and only needing a field goal to win, Texas Tech desperately tried to march back down the field. But thanks to the UH defense (as well as the Red Raiders' lack of timeouts), the Cougars held on for the nail-biting 29-28 win.
The win is remarkable considering that Houston did not play their best football of the season. The Cougars were penalized 8 times for 74 yards, including one penalty that negated an interception. The UH defense allowed 163 rushing yards to a team that had managed a total of only 86 rushing yards in their first three games combined. Special teams missed two field goals. Keenum's 65.5 percent pass completion rate, while decent, was lower than usual. He also was sacked twice and intercepted once. The Coogs also got some help from Texas Tech mistakes: aside from the Red Raiders' two turnovers and 8 penalties, there was also head coach Mike Leach's decision to go for it on 4th-and-1 when a field goal probably would have put the game out of reach, as well as Tech's decision to use their three time outs early in the second half.
Still, a win is a win and their second-consecutive victory over a Big XII opponent was a huge one for the Cougars, one that proved that the stunning upset at Oklahoma State two weeks ago was no fluke and that the Cougars are indeed a team to be respected. The nation has noticed. The Cougars are now ranked #12 in the AP poll and are being mentioned as possible "BCS Busters" by national media outlets such as The Washington Post and The New York Times. Case Keenum is also getting some serious attention as a Heisman candidate.
In my opinion, it's too early to think of the Cougars as a "BCS Buster." They'd have to go undefeated in order to do so and that's still a tall order. The team now needs to go on a grueling three-game road trip; Saturday's game against Texas El-Paso has "letdown" and "trap" written all over it and the showdown against SEC team Mississippi State two weeks from now looms large. Nevertheless, if you had told me before the season started that the Cougars would be 3-0 and ranked right outside the top ten right now, I wouldn't have believed you. This has been an incredible start to the 2009 football season and I am thoroughly enjoying it.
It will be months, if not years, before the true significance of last Saturday's game and its Two-Day Drive will be known. But, from where I stood that night at a packed Robertson Stadium, watching the Cougars drive 95 yards in five minutes to win a game over a Big XII opponent, you'd have a hard time convincing me that University of Houston had not finally reached its turning point. After suffering for so long through so many seasons of mediocrity and apathy, this is a much-needed and well-deserved time for the University of Houston, its athletes, its coaches, its students and its alumni. May it only continue.
Go Coogs!
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